Filing device



G. J. EVANS March 31, 1931.

FILING DEVICE Filed March 8, 1929 "uma wang uw manu. inea.

Patented Mar. 3l, 1931 UNiTED STATES GUY J. EVANS, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK FILING DEVICE Application filed March 8, 1929. Serial No. 345,482.

This invention relates to a filing device or cover which serves as a record card, and a stencil or memorandum slip holder and itsv construction being such that interchangeable 5 signals may be Vemployed to provide visible information in connection with various activities.

For example, in the mail order business it is the practice of merchants to keep records of transactions which have taken place with the trade, such for'example as the month during which the last order was received from the respective customers, the approximate amount of the orders and the number of the last price list or catalogue which was mailed to the customers. If an account with any particular customer becomes inactive due to failure to make further purchases or respond to correspondence, then-the business relations between the mail order house and the respective customer are assumed to have terminated for the time beingin which case the stencil and record card relating to the respective customer are removed from the follow-up cabinet and discarded as dead wood, thereby keeping the mailing list up to date.

It has been thecustom of users heretofore to keep lists correct as far as the addresses are concerned by replacing the card bearing the record and having the address of the customer on the stencilized portion with an entire new card of the samedescription but 'having the new address of the customer cut or typed on or in the stencilized portion, the record and stencil portion being one inseparableunit.

It is the object of this invention to provide a filing device or record card that permits of carrying within itself a stencil or memoranda slip and so constructing the same that interchangeable color signals or the like may be employed, thus furnishing the advantages of visible information. Vhen used in connection with an addressing system a change of address in accordance with this invention merely requires cutting a new stencil leaving the record portion free for continued use. This combination in its entirety is much cheaper to manufacture. The initial investment by the user is less and the expense incidental to maintaining lists of correct addresses will be reduced to a much lower point than is now possible.

In the accompanying drawings;

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one form of record, address and signal unit embodying my invention, and showing the same folded ready for storing or filing in a cabinet.

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the unit partly opened and broken away.

Figs. 3 and 4 are vertical sections, on an enlarged scale, taken on the correspondingly numbered lines in Fig. 1.

Figs. 5, 6,7 and 8 are perspective views showing different kinds and conditions of signals.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary elevation of the signal-holding portion of the card or unit with different printed matter from that in Fig. 1.

Fig. 10 is a horizontal section takenon line 10, l0, Fig. 1.

Fig. 11 is a perspective view, partly broken away, showing another form of record stencil and signal unit containing my improvements.

Fig. 12 is a vertical section .of the saine taken on line 12-12, Fig. 1'1..

Fig. '13 is a horizontal section taken on the correspondingly numbered line in Fig. 11.

In the following description similar characters of reference indicate like parts in the several gures Vof the drawings.

Referring to Figs. 1-10, the numerals 20, 21 represent the rear and front leaves of the folder body which are hingedly connected at their lower edges so as to be capable of folding and unfolding relatively to one another and upon the surface of which any suitv able record may be kept with reference to the account of any customer or other information.

Between these leaves of the folder body is placed a stencil sheet 22 bearing the name and address of the respective customer and other information, such as the lot numberof the last purchase, the weight of the same and the date of shipment. This stencil sheet is loose between the leaves of the filing cover so that the same may be removed therefrom and used repeatedly in an addressing machine for addressing letters or merchandise which is to be sent by mail or otherwise to the respective party.

For the purpose of securely confining this stencil sheet within the filing cover, one or the other of the body leaves of the latter, preferably the rear leaf, as shown in Fig. 2, is provided with two retaining iaps 23 hingedly connected with the lower parts of the vertical edges of the respective leaf, which flaps are folded inwardly over the opposite ends of the stencil sheet and prevent the saine from falling out of the folding cover while being handled.

On its upper edge one of the leaves of the body of the filing cover, preferably the rear one 20, is provided with a pocket for holding one or more signals which permit of determining at a glance the status of the respective customer with reference to certain transactions, history or events. This pocket may be variously constructed but in the preferred form shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and l, the same comprises front and rear pocket leaves 24, 25 which are adapted to fold toward and from the front side of the front body leaf 21, said front pocket leaf 24C being hingedly connected at its upper edge with the upper edge of the rear body leaf 21 and the rear pocket leaf 25 being normally arranged between the front pocket leaf and the front body leaf and hingedly connected at its lower edge with the lower edge of the front pocket leaf.

At the hinge between the upper connected edges of the front pocket leaf and the rear body leaf one or more longitudinal slits or openings are provided, preferably three slits 26, 27, 28 arranged in a longitudinal row, as shown in Fig. 1.

lVithin this pocket is arranged one or more signals` preferably three in number, each of which has a part projecting through one of the slits 26, 27, 28 at the top thereof and in the most acceptable construction each of these signals is capable of being shifted within the respective pocket to project different parts thereof through the companion slit to the exterior of the pocket for the purpose of designating some particular characteristic of the history of the respective customer.

One form of signal suitable for the present purpose may consist, as shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 5, of a card 29 of substantially rectangular form having its corners provided with notches 30 so as to produce a plurality of laterally projecting wings 31 on the four edges of this card, each of 'these wings being provided on one of its sides with different markings from the opposite side, so that each wing is distinguished from all the other wings of the respective signal card. As shown in Fig. 7 the different wings 311 of each signal card 291 are provided with numerals, in Fig. 6 the different wings 312 of the signal cards 292 have dilferent colors and the adj a` cent parts of the body of the respective card are marked with different amounts in dollars, and in Fig. 5 the wings 31 are also colored differently and associated with different months of the year on the adjacent parts of the body of the cards.

In the use of a signal the same is placed in the pocket of the liling cover with one of its wings projecting upwardly through one of the slits in the top thereof and that side of the wing facing forwardly which corre" spends to the particular information it is desired that the signal should give when glancing over a plurality of such filing covers arranged in a cabinet or otherwise.

For the purpose of increasing the signalling capacity for each signal place on the filing cover two cards may be formed integrally from the same sheet by connecting adjacent wings thereof and folding these cards together along the meeting line 32 of its connected wings, as shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7. By this means the number of indications which each signal is capable of giving is doubled, inasmuch as it is possible to first fold the connected cards so as to bring certain of the indications on the outer side and then expose one or another of these indications so as to be visible from the front of the filing cover, and then the folding of the cards may be reversed so as to uncover the opposite sides of the same and then one or another of the wings of the same exposed through the top of the pocket according to whatever information is to be conveyed.

Further increase in the signal capacity at each station of the filing cover may be obtained by providing each wing of the signal cards 292 with an opening or window 33, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8 and placing an auxiliary signal card 291 behind the card having these windows 33 so that some particular signal, such as numerals, may be exposed through these windows for information purposes, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 8. When such auxiliary signal cards 291 are em ployed the same are advantageously made in the form of two of the cards 29 hingedly connected at one edge so that the same may be folded together and placed between the foldably connected cards of a pair 292 having the corners 3() notched and the wings 312 provided with windows 33 for exposing the appropriate indication on the auxiliary or intermediate cards 291.

It will be apparent from the foregoii'lg that this form of signal permits of forming a very large number of permutations and thus fill the largest possible requirements to variety of requirements, in formation, or facts which are to be ascertained relative to the business relations of a mail order concern with its clientele.

For the purpose of shifti ig the signals in the construction shown in Figs. 1-10 it is necessary to unfold the pocket sufficient to render the signals accessible for this purpose, as shown in Figs. 2 and 9.

It is possible however to so organize this filing cover and the signals that unfolding of the pocket and removal of the signals therefrom for changing the characterof the signal is unnecessary. For example, in Figs.

11 and 12 is shown a construction in which each signal is constructed in the form of a circular card or disk 35 of which an edge portion projects through a slit in the top of the signal pocket corresponding to the slits 26, 9.7 and 28 and which has different parts of its margin provided on one or both sides with different colors, numerals, letters or other distinguishing designation whereby the appropriate signal may be established on the filing cover. In this construction the different signals on the front side of each disk can be brought to view by turning this disk from the outside of the pocket of the filing cover. y If only a limited number of signal variations are required it will suffice to only provide one sidey of the disks with different signal designations or indicia and in such cases the edges of the leaves forming the signal pocket may be connected by an adhesive so as to seal the signals therein.

`When, however, a more extended signal system is necessary to m-eet the full requirements the disks 35 may be provided on their marginal parts on opposite sides with signal markings and the leaves of the signal pocket are left detached from each other so that this pocket can be opened and permit of reversing the signal disks therein and bringing either side thereof to the front as occasion may require.

If desired the retaining flaps 23 for conining the stencil sheet between the body leaves may be omitted as shown in Figs. 11 and 13, but it is preferable to employ them for greater security.

In using this filing cover the address is printed on the front leaf of the signal pocket by employing for this purpose the stencil which is stored in the body of the cover after being used for addressing goods, letters, and other mail matter to the respective customer. This is something which has not been possible heretofore. For the purpose of keeping check on the history of any customer the signals as shown in the drawings are so distributed that the irst signalindicates the month when the last order was received from the customer represented by this filing cover, the second signal indicates the approximate amount of this order and the number of this order as is applies to the customer, and the third signal indicates the number of the last price list or catalog which has been mailed to this customer.

Upon looking over the cabinet containing these filing covers it is possible to tell at a As a whole this `tiling cover is very low in I manufacturing costv and the same is also economical in maintenance inasmuch as it is simple in construction andv requires a minivmum amount of material.

I claim as my invention: j

1. A filing device comprising a body lia-ving a pocket provided with an opening, and a separate lsignal arranged in said pocket and havinga plurality of parts each capable of being projected outwardly through said opening and beyond said bodyby shifting said signal relative to said body.

2. A filing device comprising a body, a pocket consisting of a frontleaf connected at its upper edge 'with the upper edge of said body so as to provide an opening therebetween and a rear leaf connected at its lower edge with the lower edge of said front leaf,

and a separate signal arranged within saidpocket and shiftable therein for projecting different parts thereof through said opening.

3. filing device comprising a body, a leaf connected with the upper edge of said body so as to provide an opening therebetween, and

a separate card arranged between said body and leaf and shiftable circumferentially and having different marginal parts adapted to he projected through said opening between said body and leaf. Y l

4. A filing device comprising two leaves which are connected at their upper edges and provided with a slit in said connection, and a separate signal card arranged between said leaves and having a plurality of marginal wings each adapted to project through said slit and having diferent markings.

5. A filing device comprising two leaves which are connected at their upper edges and provided with a slit in said connection, and a separate signal card arranged between said leaves and having a plurality of marginal wings each adapted to project through said slit and having different markings, and each wing having a central window opening, andV an auxiliary signal card arranged behind said first-mentioned signal card and having marginal indicia adapted to be exposed through said window openings.

6. A filing device comprising two leaves which are connected at their upper edges and provided with a slit in said connection and a signal including two cards connected at one edge and foldable upon each other at said edge and each provided with a plurality of marginal wings bearing different markings.

7. A liling device comprising two leaves which are connected at their upper edges and provided with a slit in said connection and a signal including two cards connected at oneedge and foldable upon each other at said edge and each provided with a plurality of marginal wings bearing different markings, and each of said wings having a central window opening, and an intermediate signal card arranged between said first-menti0ned cards and having marginal indicia adapted to be exposed through said window openings.

8. A filing device comprising two leaves which are connected at their upper edges and provided with a slit in said connection and a signal including two cards connected at one edge and foldable upon each other at said edge and each provided with a plurality of marginal wings bearing different markings and each of said wings having a central window opening, and a pair of auxiliary signal cards arranged between said first-mentioned signal cards and connected with each other at one edge and having marginal indicia adapted to be exposed through said window openings.

9. A filing device comprising a body having front and rear leaves connected at their lower edges, a pocket having a front leaf connected with the upper edge of said rear body leaf so as to provide an opening therebetween and a rear leaf connected at its lower edge with the the lower edge of said front pocket lear0 and arranged in front of said rear body leaf, and a separate signal arranged in said pocket and shiftable for projecting different marginal parts thereof:l through said opening and beyond said pocket, the space between said body leaves being adapted to receive a stencil.

In testimony whereof I hereby aiiix my signature.

GUY J. EVANS. 

